Interlude: The Piece at the Grave
by shadows-of-1832
Summary: Eponine brings Enjolras to his mother's grave in the hopes he'll receive peace and come to terms with all that they've uncovered prior to his father's warning. Only, Enjolras comes across what only for him is a piece that leads to more questions than he had when they got there. Bones AU (Part 2).


"I've told you before, Thenardier, there's no sense in this," Enjolras argues as he stands in front of his mother's grave, holding a bouquet of pink carnations. "She can't hear me."

Eponine smiles and rolls her eyes. "Maybe she can, wherever she is."

"I don't see how talking to her headstone is going to be of any help."

"Don't play me for dumb, Enjolras; I know you've been struggling coming to terms with all that's happened," she says, her eyes flickering to the headstone. There's a small potted bunch of flowers beside it, presumably left by Annie. "You're certain of her identity, given you've put 'Marianne Enjolras' on the headstone instead of 'Anya Fortier.'"

"It was an agreement Annie and I had; it's what we've known her as for most of our lives. To bury her with the other name and keep ours intact…we saw no logical sense in it," Enjolras explains. "We know who we are, Thenardier, it's a lot of what we have. The names, they don't matter, not when we focus on the larger picture."

_But then there's the inkling of doubt_, he keeps to himself. _Those dead names, they had once meant something_.

Eponine takes a few steps back, glancing at him. There's a question she's daring to ask, but being aware of the fragility his mind seems to be in, the fragility he won't admit to, she keeps quiet.

_And your father, who is he to you?_

"…_Your father, Michel, Raymond, whichever you think is appropriate, he did as he's always done: protect his family_…"

_And left us with dozens of unanswered questions_.

Why remain hidden? Why warn him and Annie of lurking dangers? What more is going on that they don't know about? Batamabois has been caught, the immediate threat to his and Annette's safety is behind bars, and while he's certain the trial will get him some answers, there's still a whole slew of questions that only his father can answer.

What's holding him back?

Shouldn't all be safe now? What other threats lingered that their father wouldn't speak of?

Eponine distracts him when she places a hand on his shoulder. "I'm going to be a few rows over by the tree to give you some privacy. I'll be back in a few minutes."

He nods, then she walks away, leaving him alone at his mother's grave.

"I don't understand any of this," he says, looking down at the headstone. "You're dead; you can't hear me. Being six feet beneath the ground isn't helping the situation. And I've never done this before. Thenardier seems to have this unbacked concept that you can hear me from some afterlife, and that it's supposed to comfort me. I haven't believed in any religious system for awhile, only acknowledged that every culture has them, all with different forms, rules, foundation systems…you understand."

_Of course not; she can't hear you!_

"This is rather pointless, to me, at least, because of said fact, and I'm more-so doing this so she'll leave me alone on the subject." Enjolras looks up and glances where Eponine had gone. She's watching him, hands clasped in front of her, acting as his support, as such a partner has for the past few years. He turns back to the stone and kneels down. "I brought you pink carnations; I remember you said they were your favorite. You and Annie would plant them in the front garden every spring, and Dad and I would lay down a new layer of mulch…I remember one year, you got quite upset when our cousin Charlie accidentally fell on them while playing tag with Annie and I at the summer party you would organize every year when the weather was warmer. That specific set of carnations healed from being crushed, though, and they bloomed the best, compared to the others you had that year. I remember Dad making a joke on the subject, and you weren't quite pleased with it."

_Here I reasoned she doesn't hear me, yet I'm telling stories…_

"I still have too many questions; what finding you and solving the case did, while I have some answers, there's still quite a few I don't have, and perhaps even more new ones were generated once we had more information," he admits, setting down the bouquet at the base of the headstone. "Dad's warning…You know what it's about, don't you? Why he's asking us to back off for our own safety, to protect Annie and me? Who is it that we still need protecting from?"

He moves to get back to his feet, but he catches a glimpse of something small and metallic reflect sunlight in the grass at the base of his mother's headstone. He brushes through the grass, and picks up a small charm of a frog sitting on an oblong leaf. He reaches into his coat pocket for an evidence bag, and Eponine approaches him.

"What are you doing?"

He slips the charm into the evidence bag, and gets to his feet. "There's only one person who would have left this."

Eponine takes the bag from him, peering into it. "A frog? Like your science fair project?"

Enjolras nods. "Yes, and look at the leaf, and look at the carnations. The general shape of the leaves, they're similar."

"It may be a coincidence."

"It's too specific," he says. "Whoever had this made, knew about the flowers and how much interest she had in that project."

Eponine's brows furrow, letting the bag fall flat on her hand as she examines the piece. "A sign your father was here, then."

"The most logical conclusion, yes."

Eponine gives a faint smile. "It's showing he's close by, and he's still watching. I'd call it in, have people search the area, but I doubt it'll do anything; he's long gone from these grounds."

He nods, taking back the bag and holding it. It's a step closer, he thinks, to getting answers, but still too far to know them.

A part of him feels guilt for picking up the charm. "Do you think my mother would hypothetically be upset if I took this for a time?"

A pause. Eponine glances at the headstone, then turns back and shakes her head, still smiling. "I'm sure she understands."

His hand brushes the top of the stone, and the two of them make their way back to Eponine's black SUV. He clutches tightly onto the charm, as if it holds every answer about his parents he'll ever need.

As they get to the SUV, he catches a glimpse of a graying blond man watching them from across the road. Enjolras blinks a few times, staring back at him. A few passing cars obscure his view, and the man has vanished.

"Something wrong?" Eponine asks, pausing by the half-open driver-side door.

Enjolras turns to her, then back to where the man stood. He shakes his head and opens the car door. "It's nothing. My mind is making me see things that aren't there, is all."

They get in the car and not long after, drive off, Enjolras staring at the space where the man had been until it disappears from view. He then looks at the frog and leaf charm in his hand.

There's much more digging to do.


End file.
